NEW REPORT SHOWS STRONG GROWTH OF ENTERTAINMENT AND NIGHTLIFE INDUSTRIES IN SAN FRANCISCO

Posted on September 08, 2016

Update to Supervisor Wiener’s 2012 Economic Impact Report on Entertainment and Nightlife shows that over the last 5 years, these industries have outpaced average citywide trends in job growth, and shown strong growth in economic productivity and tax contributions

San Francisco – (September 8, 2016) Today the City Economist released an update to Supervisor Wiener’s Entertainment and Nightlife Economic Impact Report that shows a significant increase in economic productivity, job growth, and tax contributions. The original report, called for by Supervisor Wiener in 2012, demonstrated the significant economic benefit of the entertainment and nightlife industries.

These numbers all show significant growth for the entertainment and nightlife industries since the initial study based on 2010 numbers. That original report can be found on the San Francisco Controller’s Website.

“Nightlife is at heart of San Francisco's culture and economy, and we must work to support this industry and its workers," said Supervisor Wiener. “San Francisco benefits from a strong nightlife industry, and this report shows the continued strength and importance of these businesses. Five years ago, when I called for the first version of this report, nightlife was too often considered a problem to be managed. After that report, we proved that entertainment and nightlife are not just a critical part of our culture, but also our economy, and I have worked with the industry and city agencies to improve permitting rules, increase late night transportation service, and promote nightlife generally. We also need to support the venues, like the Stud, that are so central to our community's identify.”

The five nightlife industries surveyed as part of this report were restaurants, bars, performing arts, venues, and art galleries. The report

Employment Growth Outpaced City AverageThe nightlife industry employment increased to a total of 60,000 jobs in 2015. The increase of 12,000 jobs from 48,000 jobs in 2010 constitutes a growth of 25%. This outpaced overall job growth across the City during that same period, which was 23%.

Growth in Nightlife EstablishmentsThe number of nightlife establishments increased grew by 13% from 2010 to 2015, for a total of 415 establishments. The growth was concentrated in restaurants and bars.

Nightlife Revenue Grew 43%Overall nightlife industry revenues in 2015 were $6 billion, which was an increase of $1.8 billion from 2010, when it was $4.2 billion.

Tax Contributions Increased 45%The General Fund tax contributions of nightlife industries was approximately $80 million. This was up from $55 million in 2010. Roughly 75% of the revenue comes from Sales Tax, with the remaining 25% coming from Payroll and Gross Receipts Tax.